Cartoon riots: Lebanon's Interior Minister quits, Syria apologises
Lebanon's Interior Minister Hassan Sabeh has resigned after protesters set fire to the Danish consulate in Beirut today.
Far less protection was given to the embassies in Beirut than in Damascus, and rioters easily managed to break through police lines to attack the buildings.
Sabeh said he refused to give permission for security services to use weapons against the protesters, and he has come under intense pressure to resign since that decision.
Meanwhile, Syria's Foreign Ministry has apologised for the damage caused to the Danish and Norweigan embassies in Damascus yesterday. Protesters burnt the buildings there, but caused less damage than in Beirut.
Nevertheless, only the Syrian riots attracted American attention. The White House said it held the Syrian government 'personally responsible' for the actions of the Syrians yesterday. I wonder if it will hold Siniora's Beirut government responsible for their trouble.
Syria says it has boosted the protection around the diplomatic missions. But denied claims that Danish and Norweigan citizens were at risk.
Sasa,
The US accused Syria of the riots in Beyrouth. Nothing that happens in lebanon is lebanon,s responsibility, that is a very confortable position. And it occurs to no one that it is also a very illogical position.
Posted by Anonymous | 1:52 am
It is surprising to condem all Arabs and muslems and Syrians for burning the danish and the norwegan embassy where nobody died in Syria ,doesn,t anybody remember the riots after a football game in europ and the riot in LA after the Rodny king case in the US ,if you want to compare ,Syrian seemed to have more restrain when you consider the gravness of the act of insulting the prophet Muhamad the most sacred to Arabs and Muslems ,some of that comes from lack of fear of retribution from the muslem world,may be the boycut if sustained will chang their veiw of Muslem determination to fight for their rights.
Posted by norman | 6:50 am
The attacks on the embassies could have been prevented; don't we have an efficient intelligence network ?
Posted by Anonymous | 7:58 am
Jerusalem Post in Israel and Philadelphia Inquierer in USA have also published the Danish cartoons.
Syria is playing dirty now. On Friday, demonstrators in Damascus set ablaze embassies of Denmark and Norway over a September 2005 publication of the caricatures in Jyllands-Posten. First time to hear of protests in Syria, this is a nice joke to begin the day. Syrians living under the oppressive regime of Al Assad are protesting, what an atmosphere of freedom! They are not of course protesting against the injustices of the regime but Denmark that published cartoons seven months ago for prophet Muhammed. Isn’t it a bit late? Let me tell you also that the Egyptian newspaper “Al Fagr”, which means Dawn in English, published the same cartoons a month ago and no one protested in Egypt.
On Sunday, in Lebanon, known to be a playground for the Syrian intelligence, protestors torched the Danish embassy in Beirut. Again, the fingerprints of Syria are clear. Over the past year, Syria executed a series of deadly attacks against anti-Syria Lebanese figures in Lebanon that took the lives of Former President Rafik Al Hariri and Journalist Samir Kasir.
Iran’s regime, Syria’s best friend, was differed to the U.N. Security Council on Saturday, so it is the perfect time to play dirty. When Lebanon asked for its independence, Syria killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafil Al Hariri. When Iraq won its freedom and now on its way to restore a democracy process, Syria started helping foreign insurgency through its borders on Iraq’s soil, so now it is to time to react in favor of Syria’s best friend, Iran, by trying to cause disability to Lebanon.
In Lebanon, on Sunday demonstrators did not torch the Danish embassy only but also armed with stones and sticks, damaged police and fire vehicles and threw stones at a Maronite Catholic church in the wealthy Ashrafieh area — a Christian neighborhood where the Danish Embassy is located. Is there an explanation for attacking Lebanese Christian citizens except that yesterday’s protests were meant for another ulterior motive?
The U.S. has been playing down the cartoons saga, but it stepped in on Sunday to warn Syria and hold it responsible for protecting the embassies.
The Syrian Dream is continuing…
Posted by Anonymous | 3:35 pm
http://ihsaniat.blogspot.com/2006/02/ashamed-of-being-syrian.html
Posted by Anonymous | 3:45 pm